


Not A Piece In Your Game

by ohmakemeahercules



Category: The Hunger Games, The Hunger Games (Movies), alternate univers - Fandom
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-07-19
Updated: 2016-07-19
Packaged: 2018-07-25 08:00:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,504
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7524736
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ohmakemeahercules/pseuds/ohmakemeahercules
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Written for the Spring 2016 Everlark Fic Exchange at everlarkficexchange.tumblr.com</p><p>Modern day college AU Everlark. I really played on others disapproval of Everlark being together but they ignore the naysayers, not wanting to be pieces in other's games.</p><p>Peeta is the dashing senior captain on Duke University's basketball team. Katniss goes to their hated rival, Univ. of North Carolina-Chapel Hill (UNC). The odds have been working against Everlark. Can they find a few to be happy even in the hostile world of college basketball rivalries?</p>
            </blockquote>





	Not A Piece In Your Game

**Author's Note:**

> Written for the Spring 2016 Everlark Fic Exchange at everlarkficexchange.tumblr.com
> 
> Inspired by the following prompt: K and P are dating but go to different schools. One of them is teased all the time about always saying no when they are asked out because no one believes they are in a relationship. The other finds out and shows up at school or some event looking hot af (or if it is K perhaps badass) and perhaps a little pda to shut everyone up. [submitted by Anonymous]
> 
> Thank you for reading! You can come find me on Tumblr @ohmakemeahercules

The early March snow crunched beneath Peeta Mellark’s stride. He was running behind; Professor Abernathy, a surly middle aged man, singled out Peeta which led to a heated argument lasting 10 minutes past class time. Luckily the basketball arena was only across a lengthy parking lot from his classroom. However, the melting ice from this morning’s winter storm steered Peeta on the side of caution. The last thing he needed was a sprained limb caused by a fall, especially today.

Tonight was the most notable night to date in Peeta’s career as senior captain for the Duke University basketball team: his final rivalry game with the Carolina Tar Heels. Not only that, but the last career home game at Cameroon Indoor Stadium. Only eight miles separated Duke and their most hated rival. Both schools had a storied history together and individually. Each game fueled by emotion and school pride, often decided by less than 10 points. The last meeting two weeks ago in Chapel Hill resulted in a last second Duke win on Carolina’s home court. Everyone was counting on him to lead the team to the same result tonight: coaches, fans, alumni, big money donors, and the media. Dwelling on outside expectations too long made his head hurt.

That being said, Peeta tried not to buy into the spectacle. His girlfriend, Katniss Everdeen, attended UNC along with his best friend’s significant other. He had even considered attending, but pressure from his mother, coaches and other prominent citizens in his hometown forced him to Duke. He was simply a piece in the game the adults around him were playing with no way out. The pair had unspoken crushes on each other since childhood; interactions evolved from blushing glances during elementary school to genuine friendship by high school graduation. Neither made a move because of the social divide: he was the son of a bakery owner in the downtown and Katniss the daughter of a coal miner in the outskirts. Each side had their own side and neither was to cross the line. The summer before junior year, Peeta put his foot down. No longer would anyone else dictate his story line. Once a genuine smile crept across her face, he knew loving her was the right choice.

His smartphone buzzed in his coat pocket; thus snapping him out of his stressed mindset. Katniss had texted him:

“Hey Pete, it’s the last day you have to pretend you hate me to save face on the court :p”

Peeta chuckled and shook his head. This is I love about you. You see me at my core and don’t care about the image. “I could never hate you. Not even with the blue devil’s trident pointed straight at my eyes.”

“Or a ram ready to head butt you from Chapel Hill to Durham?”

“Hey smart one, I was trying to make you swoon.”

“Oh god, you really are Lover Boy sometimes.”

A little easier to swallow coming from her. “Is that a problem?”

“Not as long as those words are directed towards me.”

“It’s always you, Kat. Always.”

“Good luck tonight, babe. Don’t let my outfit distract you.”

“Not a guarantee, but I’ll try. Why do you say that?”

“I want to make a certain demographic jealous.”

“You vindictive little vixen.”

He imagined her playfully shrugging with a smirk. “Hey, I protect what’s mine. You better get to practice before we both melt into syrupy puddles.”

And she says she’s not good with words. “Yeah, better go earn back masculine points. I’ll see you soon, beautiful. :*”

Peeta arrived in the team locker room a minute later. His best friend and fellow senior Finnick Odair was joking around with two younger teammates. Finnick raised his eyebrows at his superior. “Hey! Lover boy!”

“What, Finnick?” Peeta groaned.

“Where have you been? Practice is in five minutes!”

Who are you, my mother? Shouldn’t you be out there already? “Class ran late then I was texting Katniss.”

“You’re not even dressed! This isn’t like you!”

Peeta shrugged. “This weather isn’t conducive to walking around in a shirt and basketball shorts.”

“Why so snappy, Captain?”

I don’t appreciate your snide comments. “Just give me a minute. I’ll meet you on the court.”

“Come along gentlemen, our dear leader needs an attitude adjustment.” Finnick instructed his colleagues.

Peeta snorted and started rummaging through his gym bag. Normally his friend’s comments rolled off his shoulders. Exchanges started out like this many times before. Yet the pressure he was under at the moment added an unusually sharp edge to his demeanor.

Finnick coined the ‘lover boy’ nickname freshman year because Peeta was popular with the ladies. Peeta couldn’t help it; he treated everyone with kindness and respect, regardless of class, skin color, religion or any other divisive characteristics. He dated off and on; the longest was 8 months with Glimmer Smith, the daughter of a prominent state representative. While they both liked each other, they both knew the relationship was created because their powerhouse parents who wanted their kids to date notable characters. Katniss was never far from his mind, and Glimmer knew that. Her parting words still resonated: “We both know who makes you happy; you need to tell her. You’re an adult now; it’s okay to make your own choices even if not everyone agrees with them.” He and Katniss started dating shortly after.

Even so, not everyone respected his choices. Mrs. Mellark constantly expressed her disapproval to the point that Peeta abstained from talking about Katniss with her. The basketball officials went ballistic when they found out their star player was dating a UNC student. They saw it as sacrilege and treason. He was called to Coach Mike Krzyzewski’s office several times during his junior season over the matter. Discussions turned volatile. Last April, Peeta gave Coach K an ultimatum: respect my choices or I won’t return for my senior season. Sports columnists and media personalities from the university to national level crucified Peeta, calling him a selfish, entitled, spoiled brat. Taunting comments shot at him left and right: especially when he and Katniss were on dates. Worn down from scrutiny, he suggested they break up. Katniss refused: she knew the naysayers wanted this. Did he truly want to give everyone that satisfaction of ruining something he’d wanted for so long? Peeta started crying, heartbroken at the thought of losing Katniss when fear of other’s opinions had kept him from pursuing her in the first place. She held him close; reassuring him she wouldn’t go anywhere. She loved him and they would whether this storm together. A lovemaking session sweeter than southerners like their tea followed soon after. Once again, he knew their love was real.

Okay, my mind is wandering too far. I have a game to prepare for. He was dressed in his practice uniform. Time to take care of business. He pushed his blonde curls back, knowing full well they would be sweat drenched in a matter of hours. He always took two showers on game day: one after practice and one after the game to wash off the gunk accumulation and start out with a clean slate.

Practice was high intensity per usual. ‘Walkthrough’ practices didn’t exist in Duke’s world. He expected his players to stay on their A game 100 percent of the time. Especially game day. If anyone acted even a hair out of line in the coaches presence, the player was heavily reprimanded. The expectations in general measured so high that the officials forgot he and his teammates were late teen to early twenties age. This was lot to expect on someone their age. Peeta often left pre-game practices wondering if he had any energy left. At least today a significant amount of frustrated energy drained away by sweat.

The team meal followed an uneventful team meeting. Peeta and Finnick sat away from the main group. “You okay, Peeta?”

“I suppose. Sorry I snapped earlier. One of my professors was on my case and I wasn’t in mood to hear it from you, too.”

Finnick nodded. “I get it. Critics and opinions are spewed at you from every direction. I don’t know how you handle it.”

“I’m so ready for this season to be over. I’m ready to step out of the spotlight and never look at basketball again.” He sighed.

“Which is a shame because you’re so talented and you love to play the game.”

Peeta sighed. “Not for an organization that thinks they own you and refuse to respect your personal choices.”

“Listen. Tonight’s the last regular season game. We go to the ACC tournament next week and the big dance. Then you’ll be done. You don’t have to come back to Duke’s campus if you don’t want to.”

“Expect I won’t be. Once you’re in this sport, you never leave. It’ll always be attached to my name. Peeta Mellark, former Duke University basketball player. I’ll still get recognized and stop for accomplishments that don’t mean much long term. So what if I have 1000 assists in my career. That doesn’t reflect on me as a person.

“Sure it does. It means you share rather than hog the glory to yourself. It means you help others shine and see the beauty they don’t see in themselves. You value being fair over cheating and buying into the heat of the moment.”

Peeta flushed at his friend’s comments.

“Do I need to go on?”

“Thanks, Finnick. I’m feeling unusually cynical for some reason.”

“No matter whose arse gets beaten tonight, we still have each other. We’ll go out for drinks with Annie and Katniss afterward and life will be good.”

Peeta smiled. “Sounds like a deal to me, brother.”

The deafening decibels of the crowd greeted the team as they took the court pregame warm ups. The sheer amount of sound amazed Peeta every game. How could people make so much noise for the college kids in baggy jerseys dribbling an orange ball around a wood floor? What if that energy was redirected? Now’s not the time to wonder about such things. I have a team to lead. 

Warmups started at the three point line with each player shooting three point shots at the basket. Three pointers were Peeta’s specialty. He averaged making five or six a game all season long. One of Coach K’s favorite plays was Peeta sneaking into the corner of the court and pass the ball to him so he could make a three.

Finnick nudged his friend. “Peeta, your girl is here.”

He noticed Katniss in a tight black dress with baby blue leggings and black heeled boots approaching her chair a few rows up from the floor. Her brunette curls accented the halter neckline and the makeup enhanced her features. “Damn, you weren’t joking.” He murmured before whistling in approval.

Katniss swayed her hips provocatively. “Like what you see?”

Peeta winked and formed a circle with his thumb and index finger.

“Mellark!” Randall, one of the assistant coaches barked. “Stop wooing the ladies and get back in the game!”

That was my girlfriend, thank you. Whose dress will end up on the floor by the end of the night because she looks damn fine. He turned his back to adjust his manhood and combat the oncoming boner. Now’s not the time, dick. Contain yourself.

Finnick burst out laughing as he shot a ball toward the basket. “You just fondled yourself front of a sold out crowd. That’ll make front page news!”

“So would you if Annie showed up in a number like that!” Peeta replied through gritted teeth.

“Touché, captain.”

The first half wasn’t too kind to Peeta. He couldn’t get any open looks at the basket and was consistently double teamed by North Carolina’s Cato Young and Thresh Williams. The one time he scored any points was at the foul line after Cato got too aggressive in his defensive technique. Luckily Cato committed his third foul which meant he’d have to sit a good amount of the second half. UNC led by 8 at half time. The first possession of the second half, Finnick had the fall while guarded by Gloss Chaffin. He passed the ball to Peeta, who released a shot. Thresh blocked it on the way up and sent the ball flying into the stands. Then Peeta heard a women yelp in pain. Oh, shit, the ball hit someone! I better check on them! He held up his hands in a T formation to call a timeout. He turned toward the sound and saw Katniss holding her head while Annie tried to comfort her. Fuck. He immediately took off to her seat.

“I’m so sorry!” He exclaimed. “You okay, Kat?”

She nodded rapidly. “Fine. Only a little bump.”

“You sure?”

She responded with a quick kiss on the lips. “Get back in the game before Coach K benches you!”

“Love you.” Peeta hurried down the stairs and across the court to his team’s huddle. His coach shot him a dirty look but didn’t push the issue further.

Thresh got a technical foul on that play due to the ball harming a spectator. Peeta shot Duke’s foul shots and made both. The call angered both Thresh and Cato more; they kept on Peeta’s case the rest of the game. Also Peeta kept glancing in Katniss’s direction every so often. Someone had gotten her a cold compress as she was holding it on her head. He finished with 15 points and 8 assists on the night. Duke lost by four points. Honestly the loss didn’t hurt much. Peeta cared more about his partner’s welfare than his.

The next hour consisted of annoying microphones stuck in his face in the locker rooms and a press conference asking stupid questions he’d answered millions of times before. Several reporters asked about the ball incident with Katniss but he refused to comment. He couldn’t give them more fuel to the fire like last year. Can’t these people fuck off? Today’s been a long day. I’m sick of this song and dance.

Finnick arranged for them to meet Katniss and Annie at a restaurant not far from campus. The duo arrived around 10 as their ladies waited for them. Peeta immediately enveloped his arms around Katniss. She briefly buried her face in his shoulder as they hugged.

“Does it hurt?” He whispered.

She shook her head. “Not really. Just a little unsightly is all.”

He kissed the bump on her forehead. “I really am sorry. I didn’t mean for that to happen.”

“I know,” she whispered. “Thresh got me good. Your lips do feel nice there, though. Maybe your kisses alone will make it go away.”

Peeta grinned. “In that case I’ll kiss it all night.” He kissed the area repeatedly.

Katniss giggled. “Peeta, you do realize we have company, right?”

“So? I have all I need in my arms right now.” ‘

Finnick cleared his throat. “Do you two need a private room?”

Katniss blushed as they broke away. “Not right now, anyway.”


End file.
